Audiophile on a Budget: Monster Headphones for $40, $42 off a Polk Soundbar

In a perfect world, music would be delivered to our ears directly from the studio and our home theaters would just drop us into the movie. And it would all be free! But until technology catches up with our daydreams and replicators render money somewhat obsolete, then you'll have to settle for the best audio deals around. Score a pair of tangle-free earbuds for $10, save $34 on a pair of Monster headphones, and get a $42 price low on a Polk soundbar.

Is It Worth It?: Ditch annoying tangled cables forever with the ZipBuds Fresh earbuds in Pink. These revolutionary earbuds sport a cable that's integrated with a zipper — just put 'em on, zip 'em up, and forget about fiddling with cord knots ever again. At $10, these earbuds are also an Editors' Choice $30 price low. Three sets of ear tips are also included, to make sure you get the perfect fit.

Is It Worth It?: You're not so worried about knots (see what we did there?), but need a pair of in-ear headphones that won't fly out during your run. Spend your $10 on the MEElectronics M6 Sport earphones instead, and you'll save $9. These noise-isolating earphones feature a memory-wire design that conforms to your ears, and come with six sets of ear tips, a carrying bag, a shirt clip, and more.

Is It Worth It?: Should you prefer on-ear headphones to the in-ear sort, these cans from Monster can really deliver the boom. "With the right music, the Monster NCredible NTune headphones are clear and bright with no distortion and have a booming bottom end," the Gadgeteer's reviewer said. "If you are a fan of hip-hop, rap, dance/club, salsa, and the like, you'll like these headphones a lot." These Editors' Choice headphones also feature a built-in Skype-compatible ControlTalk remote. The rebate above cuts them to $40, saving you $34.

Is It Worth It?: Looking for a nice pair of over-ear headphones instead of the styles above? The Denon AH-D510R are a great choice at $40. That's $39 under our previous mention and the best price we've seen, making these headphones a clear Editors' Choice pick. These comfy cans feature 42mm neodymium drivers, a contoured headband, an in-line mic, and built-in iPhone/iPod controls.

Is It Worth It?: Streamlining the room-eating bulk and budget-eating price of a full-blown home theater sound system, soundbars are a great choice for most small- and medium-sized rooms. The Polk Audio SurroundBar 2000 is an Editors' Choice pick at $120, a $42 price low. This 31" soundbar puts out 150 watts RMS, and features dynamic balance and an on-board amplifier.

Michael adds the finishing touches to most of the Blog articles you'll see on DealNews. His work has appeared on sites like Lifehacker, the Huffington Post, and MSN Money. See him rant about video games by following him on Twitter @ThatBonebright.

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unexpectedly, all products and deals mentioned in this feature were
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